If It Takes Five Years
by Izreina Maxwell
Summary: She's not dead. Just missing. Lana tries to convince herself of that as she delivers the news to Theron.


First attempt at a SWTOR fic. Been writing for a long time and hit a wall. Many, many times. Figured it was time for something new. And, since I started playing SWTOR, I figured... why not.

I've played for a while, and I can honestly say that Lana and Theron are two of my favorite characters. And their friendship has come a long way. I'd like to think that the player was key.

So here we are. I'd love feedback.

As always, don't own it, just love it.

If It Takes Five Years

It was no secret that Lana Beniko's connection to the Force was unique. She easily sensed things that many Sith or Jedi wouldn't have seen unless through intense meditation. It was an intuition she had always had, and always relied on. But she was still shocked by the information contained on the datapad sitting on the table in front of her. Even though that intuition was telling her otherwise, emotions that she usually kept contained threatened to surface. She really wasn't sure what to believe. She trusted the source of the information, but she trusted her intuition. The Force didn't lie. Lana just didn't have the focus to see it clearly at the moment.

 _She's not dead..._

She didn't dare look at the man sitting across the table. His back was to her, but Lana needed to at least try to compose herself before she could speak to her Republic counterpart. She wasn't yet ready to consider Theron Shan a friend, but he was someone she respected. And this news wasn't just hard on him, it was devastating. Theron could deny any emotional involvement with the Jedi Shadow that had helped solidify an uneasy alliance between a few select agents of the Republic and Sith Empire against Revan, but Lana knew the truth. Theron's upbringing helped him train his mind so well, she couldn't get a read on him, but one didn't need the Force to see right through the SIS agent's mask.

"She's not dead..." Lana was surprised to hear her voice come unbidden. She was even more surprised to hear a small crack in it. It would have been unnoticeable to anyone, except Theron knew her almost as well as she knew herself. She finally braved a glance his way just in time to see his shoulders rise and fall as he took a fortifying breath and sighed. She had actually been dreading being the one to deliver the information to him. But she knew if she were in his shoes, she'd rather have the news come from someone she considered close, than from someone she barely knew. And it just had to be done in person.

Darth Marr's passing, she felt. The ripple sent through the Force was like the aftershock of a ground quake. But she felt no such effect with her Jedi ally, a woman she had been beginning to seriously consider a friend. She should have felt... something. She couldn't say what, she just knew that if the woman was dead, she would have felt something.

That was why she couldn't believe the news on the datapad. It didn't matter that the information was just confirmed by a trusted source on Theron's side. It didn't matter that news reports were already beginning to spread it all over the holonet. The more Lana reflected on her senses, the more she was convinced. And her voice was more solid when she repeated herself.

"She's not dead, Theron. I would have felt it. And..." She paused for a moment as Theron finally stood, still refusing to face her. She watched him pace a few steps before she continued. "I believe you would have, also. Even though you aren't Force-sensitive. She cares for you a great deal. And you for her. It's not completely unheard of for Force bonds to form with non-Force users."

"Lana..." Theron stopped in his pacing, finally turning towards her. Grief was present in his eyes, but one would only see it if they were really paying attention. He wasn't sure how to respond to the woman. He had let his attraction to the Jedi run far deeper than anything he had ever felt before. Sure, he'd had lovers in the past, but nothing that even remotely resembled what he felt for her. None of them had left the lasting impression that she did. It had actually scared him. So much so that he had purposefully kept his distance from her since leaving Yavin. Out of sight, out of mind.

But no matter where he went or how deeply he buried himself in his work, she was always on his mind. She was with him at night, in dreams that had never been so vivid, so real. He'd awaken and he could literally feel her in the bed with him, her soft lips brushing his cheek before the presence disappeared. Her voice would chime in during conversations he thought he was having with himself. So loud, so clear, he would have sworn she was in the room with him. Maybe a Force bond was possible. Or maybe he was just a man in love. He would admit the first long before he would admit the second.

"Maybe you're right..."

"Of course, I'm right." Lana nodded, matter-of-factly, stepping around the table to stand beside him. She was more convinced now of what her intuition was telling her. And she gave Theron a small, genuine smile as she placed a hand on his shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze. It may have seemed like a small gesture to an outsider, but it was a giant step towards what could be considered friendship. After all, since Yavin, they had begun working more and more with each other rather than running their own operations that just happen to coincide with each other. They could both be charged with treason if the right people found out. For Theron, that meant prison. For Lana, that meant death.

If this alliance was to continue, she would have to trust Theron, not just respect him. Marr's death meant that there would soon be a shortage of friends in the Empire unless she acted quickly. Support from such a powerful member of the Dark Council had come with its perks. But the aftermath of his death was about to begin. Soon, his rivals would be scrambling to take control of his assets, if they hadn't already. Lana would have to be faster.

"She's out there. She's alive. We just have to find her."

"We?" Theron didn't like the things he'd been hearing lately. But until recently, rumors were all they were. He was happy to have been able to continue to work with Lana. They worked well together, when she actually included him in her plans. He still hasn't forgiven her for staging him to be captured by the Revanites on Rishi. Even though, he had to admit, it had the result that she had wanted, that they needed. Thank the Force she hasn't done anything like that since. She was an annoying know-it-all at times, and extremely smug about it. Must be a Sith trait. But there was no denying she was good at what she did.

"You won't be rid of me so easily. While I don't yet know where this... Eternal Empire... comes from, I sense Vitiate's influence. This empire is extremely powerful. I expect neither of our governments will take this threat seriously. They're already too busy fighting each other..."

"Saresh doesn't take anything seriously... not unless it benefits her in some way... We've got a full scale invasion on our hands, I can almost guarantee it. Is she going to do anything about it? Yeah, she's gonna roll out the welcome wagon and cost us a lot of lives... We'll need to keep working together. It's just going to be a lot harder to hang onto the alliance this go around... We need... I don't know what we need." He sighed as he ran a hand down his face reaching for the datapad with his other hand. He read over the contents for the umpteen millionth time.

"We need her... She, alone, kept our forces together during the endeavor against Revan. You and I both went behind one another's backs to spy on the other." Lana raised a brow as he shot her a look. "Oh don't give me that. I took my cue from you. I know you adjusted those sensor beacons to spy on Imperial operations on Yavin. The point is, she's the reason we succeeded. And she saved a lot of lives before Darth Marr's flagship was lost. I guarantee, for her, those men and women, regardless of their affiliation, will be willing to do whatever it takes."

He sighed, nodding lightly as he tossed the datapad onto the tabletop. He glance up to her as he felt her hand on his shoulder again.

"On an added note," she said quietly, a sincerity in her voice he couldn't say he'd ever heard. She smiled softly. "She is my friend. I've not had many of those. The word 'friend' takes on a different meaning in a Sith lifestyle. I'll not leave her to the darkness this new empire brings. If it takes five months, if it takes five years. We'll find her."


End file.
